FLW Outdoors announced today that a full field of 160 pros are registered for the six 2011 FLW Tour Majors. Paybacks will extend through 70th place.
“The enthusiasm from anglers has never been higher,” said Operations Division president Kathy Fennel. “This is shaping up to be a truly remarkable season, and it starts with the incredibly talented field of pros announced today.”
Some notable facets are the presence of three generations of the Hibdon family of Missouri (the veteran father-son duo of Guido and Dion Hibdon will be joined by Dion's son Payden), the absence of longtime stalwart David Fritts and the return of Craig Powers and Koby Kreiger. Terry Baksay is on the list (he's been battling testicular cancer) and the legendary Jimmy Houston is back for another Tour season (he fished his first pro event in 1968).
Ish Monroe is the only Bassmaster Elite Series angler listed. He confirmed today that he'll forfeit his deposits for the Majors at Chickamauga (April 14-17), Table Rock (May 5-8) and Kentucky Lake (June 16-19) in order to compete in Elite Series tournaments during those weeks. He'll fish three Majors – Beaver (March 3-6), Hartwell (March 24-27) and the Red River (May 19-22) – along with the four FLW Tour Opens.
Pro anglers will compete for up to $125,000 and co-anglers will vie for up to $25,000 in each tournament, including Ranger Cup bonuses. With the full field, the paybacks will be $4,000 through 70th place on the pro side and $700 on the co-angler side.
The Tour will have anglers representing 27 states and Canada. Following is a state-by-state breakdown of the field:
Alabama (11)
Scott Canterbury -- Springville, Ala.
Craig Dowling -- Grant, Ala.
Kathryn Dysart -- Moody, Ala.
Kevin Hawk -- Guntersville, Ala.
Justin Lucas -- Guntersville, Ala.
Kyle Mabrey -- McCalla, Ala.
Jonathan Newton -- Rogersville, Ala.
Blake Nick -- Adger, Ala.
Greg Pugh -- Cullman, Ala.
Mark Stewart -- Springville, Ala.
Randall Tharp -- Gardendale, Ala.
Arkansas (16)
Stetson Blaylock -- Benton, Ark.
Greg Bohannan -- Rogers, Ark.
Terry Bolton -- Jonesboro, Ark.
Tony Chesshir -- Nashville, Ark.
George Cochran -- Hot Springs, Ark.
Jim Dillard -- Houston, Ark.
Robbie Dodson -- Harrison, Ark.
Travis Fox -- Springdale, Ark.
Rob Kilby -- Hot Springs, Ark.
Larry Nixon -- Bee Branch, Ark.
Mark Rose -- Marion, Ark.
Ray Scheide -- Dover, Ark.
Ron Shuffield -- Bismarck, Ark.
Scott Suggs -- Bryant, Ark.
Michael Williamson -- Fort Smith, Ark.
Mike Wurm -- Hot Springs, Ark.
Arizona (3)
Brett Hite -- Phoenix, Ariz.
Thanh Le -- Lake Havasu City, Ariz.
Clifford Pirch -- Payson, Ariz.
California (13)
Rusty Salewske -- Alpine, Calif.
Randy Mcabee Jr. -- Bakersfield, Calif.
Chris Neau -- Castro Valley, Calif.
Leon Knight -- Discovery Bay, Calif.
Jon Strelic -- El Cajon, Calif.
Cody Meyer -- Grass Valley, Calif.
Ishama Monroe -- Hughson, Calif.
Dustin Baker -- Lakeside, Calif.
Mike Reynolds -- Modesto, Calif.
Jason Cordiale -- Orinda, Calif.
Brent Ehrler -- Redlands, Calif.
Justin Kerr -- Simi Valley, Calif.
Kevin Johnson -- Valencia, Calif.
Connecticut (1)
Terry Baksay -- Easton, Conn.
Florida (7)
Glenn Browne -- Ocala, Fla.
John Cox -- Debary, Fla.
J.T. Kenney -- Palm Bay, Fla.
Koby Kreiger -- Okeechobee, Fla.
Scott Martin -- Clewiston, Fla.
Terry Segraves -- Kissimmee, Fla.
Mike Surman -- Boca Raton, Fla.
Georgia (13)
Clint Brownlee -- Tifton, Ga.
Glenn Chappelear -- Acworth, Ga.
Luke Clausen -- Gainesville, Ga.
Micah Frazier -- Newnan, Ga.
Wil Hardy -- Harlem, Ga.
Nick Larson -- Ball Ground, Ga.
Tom Mann Jr. -- Buford, Ga.
Jason Meninger -- Gainesville, Ga.
Jimmy Millsaps -- Canton, Ga.
Troy Morrow -- Toccoa, Ga.
Matt Peters -- Roswell, Ga.
Rusty Trancygier -- Hahira, Ga.
Jeremy York -- Loganville, Ga.
Idaho (1)
Bink Desaro -- Boise, Idaho
Illinois (6)
Mark Fisher -- Glenview, Ill.
Tim Gaskill -- Edwardsville, Ill.
Richard Lowitzki -- St Charles, Ill.
Chad Morgenthaler -- Coulterville, Ill.
Robert Sherry -- Saint Charles, Ill.
Matthew Stefan -- Chicago, Ill.
Indiana (4)
Chip Harrison -- Bremen, Ind.
Shad Schenck -- Waynetown, Ind.
Wes Thomas -- Hanover, Ind.
John Voyles -- Petersburg, Ind.
Kansas (1)
J.R. Beehler -- El Dorado, Kan.
Kentucky (14)
Sean Brehm -- Eddyville, Ky.
Ramie Colson Jr. -- Cadiz, Ky.
Bill Day -- Frankfort, Ky.
John Devere -- Berea, Ky.
James Kemper -- Frankfort, Ky.
Tim McDonald -- Prestonsburg, Ky.
Keith Monson -- Burgin, Ky.
Dan Morehead -- Paducah, Ky.
Shawn Murphy -- Nicholasville, Ky.
Brad Roberts -- Nancy, Ky.
Christian Romans -- Carrollton, Ky.
Kevin Snider -- Elizabethtown, Ky.
Kenneth (Boo) Woods -- Hazard, Ky.
David Young -- Mayfield, Ky.
Minnesota (2)
Chad Grigsby -- Maple Grove, Minn.
Jim Moynagh -- Carver, Minn.
Missouri (11)
Stuart Arthur -- Benton, Mo.
Randy Blaukat -- Joplin, Mo.
Chad Brauer -- Osage Beach, Mo.
Dion Hibdon -- Stover, Mo.
Payden Hibdon -- Stover, Mo.
Guido Hibdon -- Sunrise Beach, Mo.
Stacey King -- Reeds Spring, Mo.
Ralph Laster Jr. -- Lees Summit, Mo.
Shane Long -- Sarcoxie, Mo.
Bobby McMullin -- Pevely, Mo.
James Watson -- Waynesville, Mo.
North Carolina (5)
Matt Arey -- Shelby, N.C.
Chris Baumgardner -- Gastonia, N.C.
Brent Long -- Cornelius, N.C.
Bryan Thrift -- Shelby, N.C.
Brian Travis -- Conover, N.C.
Ohio (3)
Dick Shaffer -- Rockford, Ohio
Joe Thomas -- Milford, Ohio
Vic Vatalaro -- Kent, Ohio
Oklahoma (5)
Nick Aber -- Piedmont, Okla.
Gerald Brown -- Chickasha, Okla.
Jason Christie -- Park Hill, Okla.
Jimmy Houston -- Cookson, Okla.
Darrel Robertson -- Jay, Okla.
Oregon (1)
Jay Yelas -- Corvallis, Ore.
Pennsylvania (1)
Dave Lefebre -- Union City, Penn.
South Carolina (7)
Todd Auten -- Lake Wylie, S.C.
Anthony Gagliardi -- Prosperity, S.C.
David Goshorn -- Harleyville, S.C.
Chris Heath -- North Augusta, S.C.
Jay Keith -- Camden, S.C.
Michael Murphy -- Gilbert, S.C.
Dearal Rodgers -- Camden, S.C.
Tennessee (10)
James Christian -- Dickson, Tenn.
Brandon Coulter -- Knoxville, Tenn.
Bo Cross -- Knoxville, Tenn.
Brad Knight -- Wartburg, Tenn.
Andy Morgan -- Dayton, Tenn.
Craig Powers -- Rockwood, Tenn.
Tom Spangler -- Corryton, Tenn.
Wesley Strader -- Spring City, Tenn.
Jack Wade -- Knoxville, Tenn.
Adam Wagner -- Cookeville, Tenn.
Texas (17)
Nicholas Albus -- Trinity, Texas
Cody Bird -- Granbury, Texas
Robert Case -- Point, Texas
Gene Eisenmann -- Frisco, Texas
Shinichi Fukae -- Palestine, Texas
Sean Hoernke -- The Woodlands, Texas
Johnny Johnson -- Tyler, Texas
Naohiro Maruo -- Justin, Texas
Joseph Nech -- Alba, Texas
Tom Redington -- Royse City, Texas
Jason Reyes -- Huffman, Texas
Mark Rouse -- League City, Texas
John Tanner -- Quitman, Texas
Jim Tutt -- Longview, Texas
Lance Vick -- Mineola, Texas
Clark Wendlandt -- Leander, Texas
Gary Yamamoto -- Palestine, Texas
Utah (1)
Roy Hawk -- Salt Lake City, Utah
Virginia (4)
David Dudley -- Lynchburg, Va.
J.T. Palmore -- Valentines, Va.
Robert Pearson -- Herndon, Va.
Jacob Powroznik -- Prince George, Va.
Washington (1)
David Kromm -- Kennewick, Wash.
Wisconsin (1)
Tom Monsoor -- La Crosse, Wis.
Canada (1)
Charles Sim -- Ottawa, Ont.
